


Dashing Through The Snow

by sehellys



Category: The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Family, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:48:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25901590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sehellys/pseuds/sehellys
Summary: Estel goes on a wintery adventure
Relationships: Aragorn | Estel & Elladan & Elrohir & Elrond Peredhel
Kudos: 12





	Dashing Through The Snow

**Dashing through the snow**

Estel was up early. The sun had not yet risen over the horizon and would not for a while yet, as Estel knew, now that it was so close to the winter solstice. Carefully the little child put on his tunic and breeches and threw his warm winter coat over his shoulders. He winced slightly at the weight of the heavy fabric, lined with fur, but was glad that it would allow him to go outside without feeling chilly. The coat also had roomy pockets, which would come in handy on his mission.

He wriggled into his boots and pulled with all his strength on the straps to get the footwear up and over his knees. He did not really like his boots for they were heavy and made a lot of noise, a clear disadvantage to an adventurer like him. And Estel knew that he would need to be extra careful to step quietly when he crossed the hallway or he would wake his whole family.

Casting a critical look in the mirror to make sure he had remembered all necessary items of clothing for his trip outdoors, Estel eventually declared himself ready. He ran towards his door and opened it with a flourish, but he was equally fast in turning around and racing back to his bed.

He had forgotten the most important thing!

Quickly he shoved his small hands under the mattress and retrieved the large carrot he had hidden there the evening before. It had taken him his most innocent look to get the orange vegetable from the cook and he just knew that his pony would love the treat.

Now, equipped with a present for his loyal steed Estel turned around once more and raced through the still open door. After a few moments the boy remembered that he had meant to sneak through the hall and came to a screeching halt as the leather soles on his boot slid over the smooth marble surface of the floor. Estel held his breath for a few moments but no sound reached his ears and he was confident that no one had noticed him leaving his room.

Much more careful and a lot slower Estel continued his way down the hall and soon reached the ground floor and the side door that would allow him to slip out of the house and into the gardens. But when Estel silently opened the grey door his adventure suffered an unexpected setback.

It had snowed overnight.

And instead of the thin layer of snow that had caused him so much joy yesterday as he ran around the yard, flinging snow balls at his brothers and, once, at Erestor, now the snow was so deep it reached above his knees.

The little boy tightened his grip on the carrot in his pocket - he was determined to get the vegetable to his pony and he would not fail. ‘Restor had told him yesterday that snow, while fluffy, pretty and a lot of fun for little humans also had its bad sides. The cold blanket would freeze the ground and put Yavanna’s fruits to sleep until the coming of spring. And that meant that there was a lot less food for animals during the winter months - animals like Estel’s pony. The boy had come to the conclusion that he would have to make sure his equine companion got through the winter without problems by bringing him some secret extra rations from the kitchen every day before sunrise.

And now that he had managed to both get a carrot from the kitchens and leave his room early in the morning without disturbing anyone, he would not be thwarted by snow. Determination clearly visible on his little face Estel set out to cross the field of snow that lay between him and the stables. In the vain hope that his small body would have by now learnt to walk on snow like his brothers did Estel carefully lifted his right foot and placed it on the surface of the snow in front of him. So far so good.

As he slowly edged forward, placing additional weight on the right leg bit by bit he was dismayed to notice he sunk into the soft white material immediately.

Sighing audibly, Estel was resigned to find that once more his mortal body made things difficult for him. He knew of course that this would have been the obvious outcome of his endeavour to walk on snow, but it never hurt to try if maybe things had changed overnight.

As the snow slowly compacted under the weight of his small body, Estel found his foothold solid enough to continue forward. He decided he’d take the fact that he sank in only about halfway to the ground below as a small victory. And with that cheerful thought the young boy continued on.

It was a slow and tedious trek for the boy but Estel would just grab his carrot tighter whenever he felt like giving up. The fact that he realized the way back would be just as difficult as the way forward also helped to keep him focused. For a moment he wondered if this meant that he had also inherited some of the ‘famous stubbornness of Elrond’ that Glorfindel sometimes mentioned while throwing his hands up in the air funnily, and decided that, yes, this was probably a sign of that stubbornness. It was a very nice thought.

After a few more exhausting minutes Estel finally reached the trail that would lead him to the stables. Elves could run on top of snow so these paths were few but for their beloved horses the elves had cleared paths that led from the stables towards the main path. There was also a path leading from the road to the main gate that was kept meticulously snow free, as Elrond’s house was always open to visitors of any race.

Estel knew he could have followed that path all the way to the stables but he hadn’t wanted to risk running into a guard or well-meaning kitchen maid who would then tell his family that he was up and about. No this trip was way too important to risk having his father forbid it.

His pony needed food!

Also, if Estel was perfectly honest with himself, he missed his furry friend. After the first snow falls his riding lessons had been suspended until further notice because the snow would be too difficult for the small horse to ride through for a prolonged time and hidden ice could make the footing treacherous. There had not yet been any time to clear a training area for Estel to continue his training in a safe environment.

He was making faster progress on the even, snow-free trail and Estel ran across the path, glad to finally be able to place his feet one in front of the other without having to lift them out of the snow first.

The sun was rising bright and clear over the high cliffs shielding the hidden valley of Rivendell from unfriendly eyes and the bright light on the brilliant white snow around him almost blinded the boy. But the view was one of pure beauty and tranquillity and if he hadn’t been too excited about the prospect of finally seeing his pony, Estel would certainly have stopped to admire the view.

“Good morning Estel, you are up early” the stable master greeted as the young boy ran past him.

“Morning C’maendir”, Estel shouted back over his shoulder just before he disappeared inside the stable. The stable master, Camaendir, would not report him to his father, Estel knew, and even if he did, he was so close to his goal now. Already the box of his beloved pony, Talfast, was coming into view and the excited boy skidded to a halt in front of it.

Estel looked around briefly, quickly discovering what he knew he’d need – a small stool. He brought it over to Talfast’s box and quickly climbed on top of it. With a few valuable inches more he could finally look over the wooden door to his pony’s stall. He almost fell backward as Talfast’s face came up to his own, his pony eagerly greeting its rider and friend.

Estel giggled and half-heartedly pushed at the large face.

“Just wait a moment, ‘Fast,” he admonished while he tried to wrestle the large carrot from his coat pocket. It had certainly been easier to stuff the unwieldy vegetable in there and now it took Estel a moment to get it out. Finally he held it up triumphantly and then proceeded to give it to his pony.

“Now you won’t starve.” The young boy was clearly overjoyed at the prospect of having saved his pony from the ‘hardships of winter that wild animals faced’ – according to ‘Restor. Talfast, too, was happy at the unexpected treat and the welcome companionship of his small human rider.

Estel waited patiently until the small horse had finished his extra meal. Then he patted his equine friend once more over the head for good measure and wished his friend farewell. He had to get back home before his ada noticed he was missing after all.

But when Estel exited from the stable he found that returning unnoticed was an impossible task. For there, right in front of him, stood his father, Lord Elrond. He was discussing something with Camaendir and for a brief moment Estel wondered if the stable master had indeed run back to the house to tell him of his son’s appearance at the stable. But even with elven speed, Camaendir would not have been back this fast and Estel didn’t want to believe that the kind master of horses would tell on him.

The young boy’s thoughts were interrupted however when his father noticed his presence.

“Ah Estel, there you are.” The elven lord quickly mustered his youngest son and and Estel squirmed under the gaze. He could only hope he would pass his father’s inspection, though he was sure he had remembered all his warm woollen clothes. Even the scratchy gloves.

Fighting the urge to lower his gaze and look at his feet, Estel was happy to see that his adar did not frown, in fact there was a small smile on his father’s face.

Maybe he wouldn’t be scolded after all.

“Your brothers have been preparing a little surprise for you, Estel” Elrond continued, “and I was just about to get you when I noticed you had left already.” Estel steeled himself for the next words, this was it - he _would_ get scolded. His father had been looking for him.

He held his breath, steeling himself for the inevitable, but his father merely smiled wider and spoke lightly. “It is just as well that you came here by yourself because you will find your brothers right behind the stable.”

Surprised, Estel looked up at his father , his eyes wide, excitement running through him. Waiting for his father to indicate with a small nod, that he was indeed free to go find his brothers Estel bounded off around the nearest corner of the stable, barely suppressing the excited giggles that tried to escape him.

He raced around the long wooden building and almost stumbled in the snow a few times in his haste to get around the last corner. When he finally reached it and ran past it he was greeted with a snow ball that hit him straight in the face.

Momentarily taken aback Estel came to a halt and whipped the offending snow off his face. Elladan and Elrohir were standing not far from him, glee obvious on their faces as their eyes glinted with mischief. Their melodical laughter only got louder when Estel scooped up some snow at his feet and hastily made a snow missile of his own to hurl back at his brothers. Both hands, each filled with a fist full of snow, held high Estel raced towards Elladan and Elrohir and almost stumbled as the ground before him suddenly fell off.

Bewildered he lowered his hands as he realized that he had stepped off a make shift snow path and onto a large circular area, completely cleared from snow and ice. His brothers had made him a training ground to ride Talfast.

Dropping the snow balls he still held in his small hands, Estel continued to race towards his brothers but instead of showering them with cold projectiles the young boy instead flung his arms around them.

“You like your surprise then?” Elladan asked as he extricated himself from the tight hug so that Elrohir could pick up their little brother, and together they walked back into the direction of the stable.

“I love it!” Estel exclaimed and his eyes sparkled with obvious excitement. “Ca we get Talfast and ride now?”

“Ada already went to talk to Camaendir to have your pony made ready. Ah, and there they are.”

At that moment Elrond and Camaendir turned around the corner of the stable, Talfast, fully equipped with saddle and bridle, trotting dutifully behind them. Wriggling until Elrohir placed him back down, Estel raced to embrace his ada’s legs in a quick embrace before he took Talfast’s reins into his own hands to lead his pony back to the training grounds.

The pony, after having been spoiled by the little human mere moments ago was only too happy to indulge his little rider and Estel spent most of the morning having the best riding lesson ever.

_The End_

_Disclaimer: Not mine_

_A/N: Just a little bit of pointless fluff that I wanted to post, because it’s good hobbit manners to hand out gifts on one’s birthday. I hope you enjoyed it! I’d love to hear your thoughts on little Estel fluff <3_


End file.
